Radiographic Assessment of the Quality of Root Canal Fillings Performed by undergraduate Dental Students in Tripoli, Libya: A Pilot Study

The success of endodontic treatment is remarkably affected by the radiographic technical quality of the canal(s) filling. The pilot study aimed to assess the root canal fillings performed by fourth-year students at the College of Dentistry, University of Tripoli, Libya, during the 2024 academic year. Undergraduate preclinical dental students performed a root canal treatment on 73 single-rooted artificial teeth. For root canal preparation, the step-back method was used with hand-held instruments made of stainless-steel files with a 0.02 taper and up to the master apical file 30. Normal saline solution was then used for irrigation. The cold lateral condensation method was used to fill each root canal. After that, the teeth were gathered and radiographically assessed using three quality criteria (length, density, and taper). Descriptive statistics, including frequencies and percentages, were used to summarize the data. The study's findings showed that the general caliber of root canal fillings was poor. Nonetheless, almost 50% of the research sample (63%) had adequate length, 40% had adequate density, and 43% had adequate taper. In the case of Taper, nearly half of the cases (49%) were rated as very insufficient. Overall, the performance of male and female dental students in root canal filling was comparable, with no statistically significant differences observed in length, density, or taper. The assessment of dental students' performance in root canal filling reveals a foundational understanding of essential clinical skills, alongside identifiable areas for improvement. The comparison between male and female students showed no statistically significant differences in performance in root canal filling, suggesting that both groups are equally positioned in their clinical training.